Gregorio Aglipay

In thisSpanish name,the first or paternalsurnameisAglipay Cruzand the second or maternal family name isLabayán.

Gregorio Aglipay Cruz y Labayán(Latin:Gregorius Aglipay Cruz;Filipino:Gregorio Labayan Aglipay Cruz;pronounceduhg-LEE-pahy;May 5, 1860 – September 1, 1940) was a Filipino formerRoman Catholicpriestandrevolutionaryduring thePhilippine RevolutionandPhilippine–American Warwho became the firsthead and leaderof theIglesia Filipina Independiente(IFI), the first-ever wholly Filipino-ledindependentChristianChurchin thePhilippinesin the form of anationalist church.

The Most ReverendMonsignorandThe Honourable Gregorio Aglipay, Obispo Máximo I D.D.
First Supreme Bishop of the Philippine Independent Church
Gregorio Aglipay, circa before the 1910s.
Church	Philippine Independent Church
See	Tondo
Installed	September 6, 1902 (acceptance & institution)
Term ended	September 1, 1940
Predecessor	Position created
Successor	Santiago Antonio Fonacier y Suguitan
Orders
Ordination	1887(as aRoman Catholic subdeacon) 1888(as aRoman Catholic deacon) December 21, 1889(as aRoman Catholic priest)
Consecration	January 18, 1903(as the firstSupreme Bishopof thePhilippine Independent Church)
Rank	Priest(Roman Catholic Church) Supreme Bishop(Philippine Independent Church)
Personal details
Born	Gregorio Aglipay Cruz y Labayán (1860-05-05)May 5, 1860 Batac,Ilocos Norte,Captaincy General of the Philippines,Spanish Empire
Died	September 1, 1940(1940-09-01)(aged 80) Manila,Philippine Commonwealth
Buried	Gregorio Aglipay National Shrine,Batac, Ilocos Norte, Philippines
Nationality	Filipino
Denomination	Roman Catholic(excommunicatedin 1899) Independent Catholic/Protestant(early IFI/PIC)
Spouse	Pilar Jamias y Ver ​ (m.1939)​
Children	1
Occupation	Religious leader, guerrilla leader, social and political activist, politician
Profession	Priest,Monsignor,BishopofAglipayan Church
Alma mater	Colegio de San Juan de Letran(AB–transferred) University of Santo Tomas(AB –graduated;LL.Bandtheology–discontinued) Immaculate Conception School of Theology (ViganSeminary)
Motto	"Serve the people!"
Sainthood
Feast day	September 5
Venerated in	The Episcopal Church(Saint on trial use only) Philippine Independent Church(Non-canonized)
Title as Saint	Bishop,Witness,Servant of God,Visionary,Patriot,andCrusader
Attributes	Episcopal vestments
Patronage	Iglesia Filipina Independiente
Shrines	Gregorio Aglipay National Shrine Batac, Ilocos Norte Gregorio L. Aglipay Shrine in Kullabeng Pinili,Ilocos Norte
MilitaryVicar Generalof theRevolutionary Government of the Philippines
In office October 20, 1898 – January 23, 1899
Member of theMalolos CongressfromIlocos Norte
In office September 15, 1898 – November 13, 1899 Serving withPedro Paterno,Primitivo Donato, Martín García, José Luna, and Pio Romero
Personal details
Political party	Republican(1905–1935)
Other political affiliations	Independent(until 1905)
Known for	The first head (Supreme Bishop) of thePhilippine Independent Church (Iglesia Filipina Independiente)
Military service
Allegiance	First Philippine Republic
Branch/service	Philippine Republican Army
Years of service	1899–1901
Rank	Lieutenant General
Battles/wars	Philippine–American War

Styles of Gregorio Aglipay
Reference style	His Eminence
Spoken style	Your Eminence
Religious style	Obispo Máximo I Monsignor Bishop
Posthumous style	The Most Reverend

Known for incitingpatrioticrebellionamong theFilipinoclergyduring thePhilippine RevolutionandPhilippine–American War,he was also apolitical activistwho became acquainted with writer and labor leaderIsabelo de los Reyeswho would then start anindependentChristian Filipino Churchcolloquially named after Aglipayin 1902 as a revolt against theRoman Catholic Church,which was thestate religionof the Philippines at the time, due to the mistreatment of theSpanish friarstowards the Filipinos. Contrary to popular belief, Aglipay did not join the IFI until one month from its proclamation by de los Reyes and theUnión Obrera Democrática.

Aglipay was previouslyexcommunicatedbyArchbishopBernardino Nozaleda y Villa ofManilain May 1899, upon the expressed permission ofPope Leo XIII,due to his involvement inrevolutionaryactivities, despite his prior intercession and defense of some of theSpanishRoman Catholic clergy fromliberal-nationalistFilipino revolutionaries. The Roman Catholic Church made attempts to bring Aglipay back to their fold, but failed. Aglipay joinedFreemasonryin May 1918, asociety excommunicated by the Roman Catholic Church.Aglipay married Pilar Jamias y Ver fromSarrat,Ilocos Nortein 1939 and then died one year later. Followers of Aglipay through the Church are sometimes colloquially referred to by their membership asAglipayans.

Early life, studies and priesthood

Historical markeratBatac, Ilocos Norte,the birthplace of Aglipay

Born inBatac,Ilocos Norteon May 5 and baptized on May 9, 1860 in the Roman Catholic Church, Aglipay personally preferred May 8 as the celebration for his date of birth.He was the third child of Pedro Aglipay y Cruz and Victoriana Labayán y Hilario and became anorphanat a young age who grew up in the care of relatives at thetobaccofields in the last volatile decades of theSpanish occupation in the Philippines.He bore deep grievances against thecolonialSpanishgovernmentof the islands, stemming from abuses within theagriculturalsystem.Arrestedat age fourteen for failing to meet his quota as atobacco-picking worker for a Spanish tobacco grower, he later moved to the country'scapitalofManilain 1876 to studylawunder the tutelage of lawyer and private school owner Julian Carpio, with the financial help of his uncle Francisco del Amor Romas who was amenialemployee of theDominican SistersSchool of Santa Catalina.

After two years of study under Carpio, Aglipay continued his studies at theColegio de San Juan de Letranin 1878 for his third year as a working student, and later at theUniversity of Santo Tomasin 1880 for his fourth year wherein he was an academic topnotcher. During his time in Santo Tomas, Aglipay metJosé Rizal,a senior medical student who used to be hisfencingpartner, and a newly-transferredIsabelo de los Reyeswho also came from Letran. Aglipay obtained hispre-lawBachelor of Artsdegreeat Santo Tomas in 1881 and subsequently enrolled inlawandtheologyin 1882, still at Santo Tomas. He then discontinued his law and theology studies at Santo Tomas and entered the Roman CatholicseminaryinVigan,Ilocos Surin 1883 at age 23, as previously influenced by Rizal.He wasordainedto thepriesthoodsix years later on December 21, 1889, on the Feast of St.Thomas the Apostle,at the oldDominicanChurchinIntramuros,Manila and celebrated his first mass as an ordained Roman Catholic priest on January 1, 1890 atSanta Cruz Church, Manila.

Aglipay then began a career as an assistant priest toSpanish friarsin variousparishesaround the mainnorthernisland ofLuzon,notably in theRoman Catholic Archdiocese of Nueva Segovia.He later dropped Cruz in his surname and while serving inVictoria, Tarlac,Aglipay discreetly gave aid to therevolutionariesand employed thirty carpenters who in reality wererevolutionistsin touch with theKatipunangroup. Aglipay then organized the said revolutionists and called their groupLiwanag( "Light" ), a local auxiliary of the Katipunan based in Victoria, Tarlac.

Philippine Revolution

In 1896, asecret society,Katipunan,led by the Supremo,Andrés Bonifacio,was discovered by Spanish authorities. With Roman Catholicism as thestate religion,Manila Archbishop Bernardino Nozaleda tasked Aglipay to confront the revolutionary leaders, offering them a level ofautonomyin the future for the Philippines if they would endthe rebellion.GeneralEmilio Aguinaldo,in turn, sent Colonel Luciano San Miguel to Aglipay with the intention of getting him to join the rebellion. Aguinaldo convinced Aglipay, who appointed him asmilitary chaplain(capellán castrense) ofthe revolutionary governmentsometime in May or June 1898, the first ever to be appointed as such in the Philippine Revolution.

Aglipay (third from right, back row) together with some of the other delegates to the first Assembly of Representatives of theMalolos Congress,taken in 1929 at theBarasoain Church,30 years after theMalolos Constitutionwas ratified.

Aglipay also later became a member of theMalolos Congress,the lone member coming from the religious sector, although he also represented his home province of Ilocos Norte, as well.On October 20, 1898, Aguinaldo elevated Aglipay to the post ofMilitaryVicar General(Vicario General Castrense) of the revolutionaries, a position that made him head of all military chaplains in the revolution. In the course of Aglipay's journeyto the north,thePhilippine–American Warstarted at the conclusion of theSpanish–American War.Aglipay interpreted his appointment as Vicar General as making him Ecclesiastical Superior to all native Filipino priests, who as such should all be appointed military chaplains for the duration of the war.

Philippine–American War

Then-Manila ArchbishopBernardino Nozaleda y Villa, who served from 1889 to 1902, excommunicated Aglipay upon the expressed permission of thepopedue to his involvement in revolutionary activities at the height of thePhilippine–American War.

When Aglipay returned to Manila and discovered that theAmericanshad attacked, he joined the revolution. Thefightingthat broke out between the U.S. and Filipino forces on February 4, 1899, prompted Aglipay to withdraw to Ilocos Norte to organize an armed resistance and was given the rank of lieutenant-general. He eventually formed the guerrilla group "Sandataan".Aglipay was summoned to Manila byManila ArchbishopBernardino Nozaleda but did not appear, which resulted in Nozaleda excommunicating Aglipay on April 29, 1899 for "usurpationofecclesiastical jurisdiction"upon the expressed permission ofPope Leo XIII,and the sentence of excommunication was exposed from May 4 to June 5 in the archiepiscopal tribunal of Manila.

Aglipay was one of the last generals to surrender to the Americans. Realizing the futility of the cause for which they had been fighting, on April 28, 1901, a month after thecapture of Aguinaldo,he surrendered to CaptainEdward Mann Lewisof the 20th U.S. Regular Infantry inLaoag,to prevent further casualties from his men as he saw less chances of winning from the much dominant American troops. After his surrender, he later moved back to the already-American-occupied Manila and worked at a reconciliation with the Roman Catholic Church. The Americans officially ended the war on July 2, 1902, and granted full amnesty to all persons in the Philippines who had participated in the conflict.

After the war

Aglipay circa 1905

Undated photo of Aglipay (center, seated), together with two unnamed IFI priests

Following the end of the war in 1902, writer-activistIsabelo de los Reyeswas working towards the formation of a nationalist church that is independent ofRome.Spanish friarswere still in control of the parishes all throughout the country at the time of the American occupation. On August 3, de los Reyes and his labor groupUnión Obrera Democráticaproclaimed the establishment of the church and suggestedin absentiathat Aglipay be its first headbishop.Aglipay, adevoutCatholic at the time even after he had been excommunicated, was reluctant as he was initially against aschism,but eventually accepted de los Reyes' offer to head an independent church on September 6, 1902, and was appointed as the firstSupreme BishoporObispo Máximoof the "Philippine Independent Church"(officiallyIglesia Filipina Independiente,abbreviated as IFI and also referred as the "Aglipayan Church" after him). The church retained many of the Roman Catholic forms of worship.

According to renowned historianTeodoro Agoncillo,Aglipay finally decided to join the new church after his talks with Francisco Foradada, a SpaniardJesuitpriest and author, backfired. Knowing that Aglipay was influential with the Filipino clergy, the Jesuits assigned Foradada in a desperate attempt to persuade Aglipay from returning to the Roman Catholic fold in order to further prevent the schism from succeeding. In a meeting held at the Jesuit House inSanta Ana, Manila,Aglipay was allegedly offered to be appointed bishop or archbishop with a large sum of money thrown in if he would return. Aglipay would have sign a document of confession to the Roman Catholic Church but on condition of assurance that by signing the document, the issues of the native Filipino Catholic priests would be solved, and thatthe Filipino clergy would be appointed to the posts formerly held by the Spanish regulars.Foradada responded by tactlessly asking Aglipay "why would he care about Filipino priests since the world knows that they are vicious and hopelessly inefficient." It was believed that Aglipay felt insulted by Foradada's brash comments that he angrily lunged at him and held him by the nape demanding to withdraw his remarks as Foradada, terrified, fell on his knees. Witnesses of the reported incident includeLeón María GuerreroandJoaquin Luna.Subsequently, Aglipay reputedly walked out from the meeting and threw away the document.

Although he had already decided to join the new church after his first failed conference with the Jesuits, Aglipay was still disinclined to accept the supreme bishop post. He even met withAmerican Protestantleaders and tried to persuade them to assist and join them in their newFilipinizedchurch in order "to divide the ranks of the [Roman] Catholics." Aglipay also suggested that Filipino priests would be appointed to higher ranks on the clergy of the new church. The American Protestants declined Aglipay's proposal as they found the new church "too Roman in its ritual" and "toorationalisticin itstheology."They were also seemingly adamant on having Filipino church leaders at the time as they were likely" enjoying the feeling of superiority. "

In a final attempt, the Jesuits tried to negotiate again with Aglipay years after he joined the new church and accepted the supreme bishop post through a more diplomatic Spanish Father Joaquin Villalonga.Pope Pius Xhad approved to grant Aglipay pardon if the new church went back to the Roman Catholic fold, but Aglipay was already persistent to continue the Iglesia Filipina Independiente.

Aglipay celebrated his first mass as thede factoSupreme Bishopon October 26, 1902. On January 18, 1903, Aglipay was consecrated to the position of Supreme Bishop, held in Manila, by the IFI Church's then-Bishops ofIsabela,Cagayan,Pangasinan,Abra,Nueva Ecija,Cavite,and Manila. As Supreme Bishop, he allied himself with thenationalistand mostradicalpolitical parties during his time, like theSakdalistas,and later on, even with theSocialistandCommunistparties.

During thetheologicaldiscussions he attended while visiting other churches on his travels abroad, Aglipay later rejected the belief in theTrinityand became theologically accepting of the mainUnitarianbelief, however, a significant number from his own Church refused to accept his amended theology. Aglipay's unitarian,rationalist,andprogressivetheological ideas were evident in his "novena",the"Pagsisiyam saBirhen sa Balintawak",1925and itsEnglishtranslation,"Novenary of the Motherland",1926.

Aglipay was awardedDoctor of Divinity(honoris causa) by theMeadville Theological SchoolinChicago,Illinoisin 1931.

Later life and legacy

Bustof Gregorio Aglipay atRizal Park

Portrait of Aglipay at theIglesia Filipina IndependienteParish of St. John the Baptist inTaguig City

Despite being aChristian leader,Aglipay, like other Filipino revolutionaries, later joinedFreemasonry.Spanish MasonicGrand MasterMiguel Moraytapersonally pushed Aglipay toFreemasonry.In May 1918, Aglipay obliged and was inducted at Magdalo Lodge 31 inCavite.In 1925, Aglipay rose to the 32nd degree, one degree short of the highest Masonic rank.

Aglipay ran forelections in 1935asPresidentof theCommonwealthunder theRepublican Party,the first nationwide at-large election ever held in the Philippines (per theTydings–McDuffie Act). He was the last presidential candidate to announce his candidacy, along withPartido Komunista ng Pilipinas' candidate Norberto Nabong as his running mate in a joint Republican-CommunistParty ticket,but both lost toManuel L. QuezonandSergio Osmeñaof theNacionalista Party,respectively. Aglipay was the first ever religious leader to run for presidency in the history of the Philippines. He sent a congratulatory message to Quezon three days after the election when the results became apparent and quickly accepted defeat.

Since his Church permits married clergy, Aglipaymarriedthen 64-year-old Pilar Jamias y Ver, a teacher fromSarrat,Ilocos Norte, in 1939 at the IFI Tondo Cathedral officiated by bishopFernando Buyser;but hediedthe following year on September 1, 1940 due tonatural causes(cerebral hemorrhage), aged 80. Then-President Manuel L. Quezon, his cabinet, and most of the highest state officials came to pay their respects in a funeral service for Aglipay.

Although he had for many years opposedcelibacy among the priesthood,Aglipay himself was not married until the age of 79. Aglipay and Jamias begot a daughter twenty six years before their marriage, named Liwliwa, born on February 24, 1913. She served as Philippine secretary of theRationalist Society of Londonand secretary to Aglipay in translating Englishlettersfor his contacts abroad. She studied at theUniversity of the Philippines.Liwliwa died on February 17, 1938, seven days before her 25th birthday or thirteen months before the marriage of Aglipay and Jamias. She was buried in the Pasay Municipal Cemetery.

Also referred to asApoAglipayby his followers, Aglipay held the position of Supreme Bishop until his death. His remains are interred at the Cathedral of Saint Mary,Aglipay National Shrinein Batac, Ilocos Norte.

Aglipay was on trial calendars inThe Episcopal Church's calendar of saintsin the years 2009 and 2015 but the aforementioned calendars were never made official and his feast is not part of current proposals.

The City of Batac, Ilocos Norte annually celebrates the 1st day of September as a special non-working holiday to commemorate the death anniversary of Aglipay, known as the "Gregorio L. Aglipay Day", which was enacted on February 10, 1989, as per Republic Act No. 6701.

Sources

• Halili, Christine N. (2004)Philippine History,pp 192–93.ISBN9712339343.

External links

• Works by or about Gregorio Aglipayat theInternet Archive
• Correspondence of Supreme Bishop Gregorio Aglipay (1902-1905)
• Thehistorical recordsof Archbishop Gregorio Aglipay of the Independent Church of the Philippines are in the Harvard Divinity School Library atHarvard Divinity SchoolinCambridge, Massachusetts.